ALBANY — If bad news for the Red Sox is good news for the Yankees, the Bronx Bombers had reason to be doubly happy on Thursday: In addition to the revelation that current and former Boston players Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz had been linked to performance-enhancing drugs, the Yankees won a heated court battle against Assemblyman Richard Brodsky.

The Westchester County Democrat hoped to force the franchise into releasing hundreds of thousands of pages in documents about the team's new $1.5 billion ballpark in the Bronx. Instead, state Supreme Court Justice John Egan ruled a subpoena issued by Brodsky's legislative committee was "overly broad."

"Subpoenas should not be used as fishing expeditions," the judge wrote in a 20-page decision.

Brodsky, who chairs the Assembly's committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions, introduced a bill on Jan. 12 to prohibit the approval of tax-funded projects that exceed $50 million without providing a "true public benefit."

At the same time, Brodsky issued a legislative subpoena to the Yankees seeking documents. He took the team to court in April hoping to compel them to comply with his effort.

He argued that the team is spending $4 billion in public money without providing enough jobs, affordable tickets or public information about the ballpark.

The Yankees legal team responded that Brodsky and his committee issued the subpoena without legislative authority.

In Thursday's ruling, Egan said the committee did have the authority. The judge noted Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver referred Brodsky's bill to the Corporations, Authorities and Commissions panel, which can issue subpoenas.

Egan wrote while Brodsky raised a good point on the issue of taxpayer-funded stadiums, the Yankees are merely the latest in a long line of teams to seek public financing.

He also noted the stadium, approved years ago by various public entities, is already built.

"Requiring the Yankees to pack up every last document relating to the construction of the new stadium, amounting to hundreds of thousands of pages, load them literally into a tractor-trailer and deliver them to the Legislature is neither reasonable nor productive of this goal," Egan wrote. "The subpoena is simply overly broad in its reach and should be quashed."

The Yankees, he said, made a good-faith effort to provide Brodsky with 400 boxes of documents.

Brodsky issued a release stating he was "gratified by (the judge's) restatement of the law vindicating legislative subpoenas and this investigation."

While Brodsky disagreed with the judge's conclusion, "We remain committed to the conclusion of our investigation and are carefully examining the decision before announcing our next steps."

George Carpinello, an Albany-based attorney for the Yankees, said the case "should be over."

The announcement came on same day the New York Times reported Ramirez and Ortiz tested positive for performance-enhancing drug use in 2003 — one year before they helped propel the Red Sox over the Yankees in American League Championship Series en route to the team's first championship since 1918.

Robert Gavin can be reached at 434-2403 or by e-mail at rgavin@timesunion.com.